Apparatus for tanning



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

D. L. HUBBARD, OF GLASTENBURY, CONNECTICUT.

APPARATUS FOR TANNING.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 24,560, dated June 28, 1859.

To all 'whom 'it may concern:

Be it known that I, D. L. HUBBARD, of Glastenbury, in the county of Hartford and State of Connecticut, have invented a new and Improved Apparatus or Device to be used 1n the Process of Tanning; and I do hereby declare that the Jfollowing is a full7 clear, and exact description ot' the same, reference being` had to the annexed drawings, in aking a part of this speoicati on, in which- Figures l and 2 are vertical central sections of my invention, the two planes of section crossing each other at right angles.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the two figures.

This invention consists in the employment Vor use of a wheel or cylinder having a periphery formed of slats and placed within a propel' vat, the whole being constructed and arranged as hereinafter fully shown and described, whereby the hides may be turned so that all their parts may be properly exposed to the action of the tannin, and fresh bark added, as well as spent bark allowed to be removed from the liquor in the vat without agitating said liquor suliiciently to appreciably deteriorate it by the absorption of oxygen, a contingency which occurs by the usual manipulation of hides in vats.

To enable those skilled in the art to fully understand and construct my invention, I will proceed to describe it.

A, a vat which may be of any suitable dimensions, and B, is a wheel or hollow cylinder suspended therein so that it may rotate ireely. This wheel is formed of two disksl a, a, connected at their edges by bars o, and oblique slats c. The position of the slats c, is shown clearly in Fig. l, and they constitute the principal portion of the periphery of the cylinder, the bars b, merely serving as firm connections for the disks a, a. The slats c, are made sulficiently deep to extend a suitable distance `within the wheel. To the inner sides of the bars pins CZ, are attached, two or more to each, two pins are shown attached to each bar in the drawings.

Hthin the vat A, at one end an apron C, is placed. This apron extends from the cen ter of the bottom of the wheel or cylinder upward to the top of the vat and corresponds with the curvature of the wheel, as shown clearly in Fig. l, the periphery of the wheel or cylinder being quite close to the apron, the outer edges of the `slats being curved corresponding to the curvature of the peripheries of the disks a, a.

The hides and bark are placed within the wheel or cylinder B, and the vat A, is supplied with a requisite quantity of water, nearly filled. The hides remain immersed a sulicient length of time so that their exposed surfaces will be acted upon by the tannin, and the wheel or cylinder B, is then slowly turned so that the portions of the hides that were previously not fully exposed may be changed or turned to occupy exposed positions and thereby cause all parts of the hides to be equally acted upon, the wheel or cylinder being slowly turned from time to time, for such purpose, in the direction indicated by arrow l. When the wheel is rota-ted in this direction the bark within the wheel or cylinder will not escape therefrom between the slats owing to the oblique position of said slats. lhenv the bark in the cylinder B, becomes spent, the cylinder is slowly turned in the direction indicated by arrow 2, and the bark will pass between the slats c, a result due to the oblique position of the slats relatively with the direction of the movement of the cylinder. The apron C, causes the bark that escapes between the slats directly over it to pass down to the open space (0*, at the end of the vat and the whole of the spent bark will therefore collect at the bottom of said open space and may readily be removed. Fresh bark of course may be placed within the cylinder at any time.

From the above description it will be seen that the hides may be changed in position without materially agitating or disturbing the liquor in the vat, and that the spent bark may also be removed without disturbing the liquor. This is an important result, for agitating or disturbing the liquor causes it to imbibe oxygen, it having an a-hnity therefor, and the tannin in solution is converted into gallic acid, and its properties destroyed. This tendency of the tannin seriously impedes the process of tanning when the hides are changed or turned by hand andthe bark renewed, for this work cannot be done without disturbing or agitating the liquor to a considerable degree. By my invention this difliculty is obviated.

I doV not claim a rotating cylinder for Wilhn theA Vat A, and arranged to operate changing the position of hides in a Vat, irreas und for the purpose set forth.

spective of the slats c, attached to the Wheel 2. I further claim in combination with and forming its periphery to effect the rethe Wheel or cylinder B, constructed as de- 5 suit described, but, scribed, the apron C, for the purpose 15 Having thus described my invention what specified.

I claim as new and desire to secure by Let- D. L. HUBBARD.

ters Patent, is- Titnessesz l. The Wheel or cylinder B, having its 1WM. TUsEH, 10 periphery formed of obliqueslats 0, placed T. V. HAUP. 

